Puzzle.



PATENTE'D MAR. 17, 1903. c. A. BENNETT.

PUZZLE. .APPLIGATION FILED NOV. 30,1901.

10 MODEL.

UNITED STATES 4 PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. BENNETT, OF TAUNTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

PUZZLE;

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent'No. 722,668, dated March 17, 1903. Application filed November 30, 1901. Serial No. 84,244 (No model.

T0 at whom, it may concern:

Be it known thatI, CHARLES A. BENNETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Taun ton, in the county of Bristol and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Puzzle, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to puzzles; and the object of the same is to provide a source of amusement of a simple nature'and wherein a plurality or series of intermingled differentlycolored spaces are employed grouped or disposed to provide a playing-field and having at regular predetermined intervals enlarged spaces, each of the latter being of a solid color, combined with a single playing piece of cubical form having the six faces thereof each of a diiferent color and the six colors corresponding to those used in the spaces in the playing-field, care being taken to avoid the use of any colors or shades not found on the playing-piece, the solution of the game being obtained by entering the playing-piece at one side, so that one face nearest one of the spaces will correspond in color or shade to that of the space and turn downwardly thereover,

and so proceed through the solution until the center space of the playing-field is reached.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a playing-field embodying the features of the invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the playing-piece.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts in the views.

The numeral 1 designates a board, which may be of suitable dimensions and preferably square, the board beingclear at the corners for the application of printed matter, as desired, and the selected name of the puzzle, which is styled in the present instance society puzzle, though other appellations may be employed without in the least detracting from the principle involved. The playingfield of the puzzle is made up of a plurality of closely-assembled spaces 2, preferably of square form and differently colored, no two like colors or shades being found in adjacent squares, into which movement of the playing-piece can be made. The form of the playing-field is substantially that of a square,

with the corner portions, as at 3, removed or broken out, and in the center of the main or outer field is an auxiliary field 4 in the shape of a Greek cross having a central goal 5 with the numeral 400 therein, the said auxiliary field being separated from the adjacent portions of the main or outer field by enlarged solid-color spaces 6, divided or separated from each other by opposite single-block spaces 7 and 8 of colors or shades difiering from that of the adjacent spaces in the main and auxiliary ,fields. In what might be termed the end portions of the main playing-field 2 are intermediate elongated or enlarged spaces 9 of a solid color dilfering'from that of any of the. block-spaces surrounding the same.

. In solving the puzzle a cube 10 is provided, and on the six sides thereof are arranged colors or shades corresponding to those illustrated in the inain and auxiliary playingfields, including the spaces 6 and 9. The

colors or shades carried by the faces of the playing-cube 10 are black, white, yellow, red, green, and blue, the colors of the space 9 being red and the space 6 being green, and when the cube or playing-piece arrives at these enlarged spaces and a corresponding color on one of its faces is turned so as to match that of the said spaces the said cube or playing-piece can be moved to any point Within the boundary of either of the enlarged spaces 6 or 9 by sliding the cube or playingpiece thereover. In solving the puzzle the cube or playing piece is started from one side, with the color on the face thereof next to one of the squares having a similar color or shade, so that when the cube or playingpiece is overturned the color on the downturned face will correspond with the space into which the cube or playing-piece has been so moved. The cube or playing-piece is then moved by overturning it either forwardly or backwardly and in opposite sidewise directions in accordance with the color of the face exposed and that can be brought nearest to a corresponding colored space. This operation of the cube is continued until the center space or goal 5 of the auxiliary field is reached, when the puzzle will have been solved, the said center space being white, and if the cube has been properly manipulated the face of the cube when the latter arrives by successive movements to the spaces surrounding the said center space or goal 5 will be white and said block can be turned into place. The solution of the puzzle may be obtained by starting at the point marked 20, which is a black space, and then following the dotted course indicated until the center space 5 is reached, care being taken to always have the block when turned properly registered as to color or, in other'words, have each face of the block or cube match the space into which it is turned.

The puzzle will form a source of amusement andcan be cheaply manufactured and sold. The extra spaces will have the eifect to mystify the solver or the one attempting the solution, and it is obvious that changes in the form of the board, as well as corresponding changes in the colors or shades of the playing-field and the playing-piece, may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention.

From the foregoing description it will be observed that the field is provided with a plurality of adjacent distinguishably-designated stations or spaces and also that said stations or spaces are arranged in a group consisting of intersecting series in which the stations or spaces of difierent designations are located in arbitrary sequence, and with this field is used a playing-piece having a plurality of distinguishably-designated faces to match said stations or spaces of the field. Instead of using colors as the designating means other devices or representations may be employed and the playing-piece correspondingly arranged or provided with similar distinguishably-designated faces, and in some instances the shape of the playing-piece may be varied from that shown. The marginal spaces on which the cube 10 is placed in starting are provided with a central cross or X mark, as clearly indicated in Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is 1. A puzzle comprising a goal and a surrounding field formed of a plurality of distinguishably-designated stations or spaces,

there being a plurality of stations or spaces bearing the same designating-mark and each station being bounded on at least two sides by stations bearing marks different from said station and from each other, and a playingpiece having a plurality of distinguishably designated faces to match said stations or spaces and the course of the playing-piece in the direction of the goal being governed by the mating of corresponding designatingmarks on the field and playing-piece.

2. A puzzle comprisinga plurality of square spaces and arranged to form a main field surrounding a central auxiliary field, the main field at opposite points having enlarged spaces of solid colors and said main field separated from the auxiliary field by said enlarged spaces of solid colors, the auxiliary field having-a central space adapted to be reached in solving the puzzle, anda playing-piece in the form of a cu be having the faces thereof colored similarly to the spaces in the field, there being no other colors in the field than those represented on the playing-piece.

3. A puzzle comprising a plural-faced playing-piece, each face of which bears a difierent designatingrinark, a playing-field having a goal and a series of spaces bearing designating-marks corresponding to those of the playing-piece and over which the playingpiece may be turned to match its marks with those of the spaces, there being a plurality of spaces bearingthe same mark and each space being boundedon at least two sides by spaces bearing ditferent marks.

4. A puzzle having a field provided with a goal and a plurality of adjacent distinguishably-designated stations or spaces, there being a plurality of stations or spaces bearing the same designating-mark and each station being arranged adjacent to a plurality of stations bearing different designating-marks, and a playing-piece, each face of which bears a difierent designating-mark corresponding to those of the field.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own Ihave hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES A. BENNETT.

Witnesses:

GEOLE. CHAMBERS, FRANK R. KNOX. 

